Sandy Spring Bancorp (NASDAQ:SASR) Research Coverage Started at StockNews.com

StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Sandy Spring Bancorp (NASDAQ:SASR) in a research note released on Tuesday. The firm issued a sell rating on the bank’s stock.

Sandy Spring Bancorp Price Performance

Sandy Spring Bancorp stock opened at $36.85 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $35.32 and a 200-day simple moving average of $30.38. The stock has a market cap of $1.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.39 and a beta of 0.96. Sandy Spring Bancorp has a 12-month low of $19.52 and a 12-month high of $39.55.

Sandy Spring Bancorp (NASDAQ:SASR) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 21st. The bank reported $0.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.46 by ($0.06). Sandy Spring Bancorp had a return on equity of 5.71% and a net margin of 11.54%. The business had revenue of $189.81 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $101.60 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.62 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Sandy Spring Bancorp will post 1.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sandy Spring Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 21st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 14th were issued a $0.34 dividend. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.69%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, November 14th. Sandy Spring Bancorp’s payout ratio is 71.58%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Sandy Spring Bancorp

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of SASR. CWM LLC increased its position in shares of Sandy Spring Bancorp by 59.4% during the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 5,561 shares of the bank’s stock worth $135,000 after purchasing an additional 2,073 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in Sandy Spring Bancorp by 2.9% in the second quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 25,456 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $620,000 after buying an additional 723 shares during the last quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC boosted its holdings in shares of Sandy Spring Bancorp by 69.1% in the second quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 148,921 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $3,628,000 after acquiring an additional 60,850 shares during the period. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Sandy Spring Bancorp by 36.2% during the second quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 21,050 shares of the bank’s stock worth $513,000 after acquiring an additional 5,600 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC increased its holdings in shares of Sandy Spring Bancorp by 3.5% in the 2nd quarter. Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC now owns 107,195 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $2,611,000 after acquiring an additional 3,633 shares during the period. 66.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Sandy Spring Bancorp Company Profile

Sandy Spring Bancorp, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Sandy Spring Bank that provides commercial and retail banking, mortgage, private banking, and trust services to individuals and businesses in the United States. It offers financial products and services, including various loan and deposit products.